Members: Information and Communications Technology

Frank Field: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission whether he plans to make Blackberry machines available for use by hon. Members.

Nick Harvey: Personal digital assistants (PDAs) and Smartphones are available to Members via PICT, the parliamentary ICT service. This service has been available since June 2006. The devices and their voice and data costs are met by individual Members while the supporting infrastructure is funded centrally. The product range is regularly reviewed and at present four different devices can be selected. Blackberries are not available under this service because none of the responses received to the full EU tender proposed that product.

Football

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what financial commitments were made to the Government by the premier league as part of the recent broadcasting agreement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 24 January 2008
	 Both my right hon. Friend the Member for Stalybridge and Hyde (James Purnell) and I have had a number of discussions with the premier league about the funding contribution to good causes following their broadcasting agreement.
	These discussions are nearing completion and we intend formally to announce the detail of the funding in the near future.

Aviation: Security

Julian Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the aviation security summit referred to by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Westminster Hall debate on 10 July 2007,  Official Report, column 366WH, took place; what conclusions were reached at the summit; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The summit was hosted by the Secretary of State on 19 July 2007 and was attended by senior representatives from the aviation industry. The main conclusions from the summit were that Government and industry should work together to ensure passengers arriving at airports last summer were better prepared and to consider how the one bag restriction can be lifted without compromising security.

Departmental Data Protection

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the statement of 17 December 2007, on data loss, what personal data for which her Department is responsible are  (a) stored and  (b) processed overseas; and if she will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: holding answer 7 January 2008
	 The Department for Transport includes its seven agencies, a shared service centre and the central Department. The only business unit within the Department that is responsible for significant amounts of personal information that is stored and/or processed overseas is the Driving Standards Agency.
	The Driving Standards Agency has a contract with Pearson Driving Assessments Ltd. for the delivery of the driving theory test. Pursuant to this contract, the following data on candidates sitting their test is stored and processed in the United States:
	Title; First name; Surname; Address; Postcode; Alternative postal address (if required); Phone number (optional); e-mail (optional); Date of birth; Gender; Specific card details that enable payment to be taken i.e. expiry date, card number, name, issue number; Date of test; Location of test; Test Score; Response to each multiple choice question; Response to each hazard perception test clip; Test category taken; Test pass/fail; Pass certificate number (if applicable); Special accommodation arranged i.e. voice over language, reader recorder,; British sign language/signer, translator (if required); Survey responses (optional); and Ethnic group (optional).
	The Vehicle Certification Agency has offices in US, Japan, Malaysia, India and China. These offices keep small volumes of personal information of its UK Civil Servants based overseas, locally employed staff and contractors. The total number of individuals included is less that 100, five of which are VCA UK civil servants.
	The central Department has a contract with Penna plc for the storage and processing of data relating to the performance management of DFT staff. These data are stored and processed in the United States. The information held includes employee name, team, e-mail address, gender, employee ID, pay band and responses to assessment questions. Approximately 8,800 records relating to civil servants are currently stored.

Energy: EU Action

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what proposals were put forward by the United Kingdom for inclusion in the European Strategic Energy Technology (SET) plan being developed by the European Commission; which proposals were subsequently included in the SET plan; and what steps the United Kingdom intends to take to help remove institutional barriers to the take up of new energy technologies.

Malcolm Wicks: The United Kingdom, along with other EU member states, has been closely involved in the development of the European Strategic Energy Technology plan, and has engaged in discussions and commented and made suggestions on all aspects of the plan as it has developed over the past year. Industry participation has also been an important element of the process.
	In broad terms the United Kingdom has advocated a SET plan that should set the strategic context and direction for EU policies and initiatives relevant to the development and deployment of new low carbon energy technologies, and that will add value to national .policies and programmes.
	The resulting SET plan, which is set to be adopted at the forthcoming EU Spring Council, reflects many of the issues raised by the UK in discussion. It is summarised in the Explanatory Memorandum to the 'Commission Communication: A European Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-Plan)—Towards a low-carbon future', deposited in Parliament by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform on 16 December 2007.
	Later this year, the Government will launch a full consultation on what more we should do to increase renewable energy use to meet our share of the EU 2020 renewables target. This will include consideration of how to remove barriers.

Energy: Prices

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what estimate he has made of average energy prices in  (a) England,  (b) Scotland,  (c) Northern Ireland and  (d) Wales in the latest period for which figures are available.

Malcolm Wicks: Data on energy prices is published by BERR in Quarterly Energy prices:
	http://www.berr.gov.uk/energy/statistics/publications/prices/index.html
	Domestic prices are available on a regional basis. Electricity prices for England and Wales are not available separately, as data is collected by public electricity supply (PES) area, and some of these areas straddle the England/Wales border. BERR does not publish average gas price data for Northern Ireland. Regional price data is not available for industrial consumers.
	For 2007, average prices for gas and electricity for domestic consumers paying by standard credit in pence per kWh were as follows:
	
		
			  Energy Price s : in pence per kWh 
			   England and Wales  Scotland  Northern Ireland  Wales 
			 Electricity 11.55 12.15 11.42 — 
			 Gas 3.07 3.04 — 2.97

Macfarlan Smith

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2007,  Official Report, columns 213-5W on Macfarlan Smith, when the analysis of Macfarlan Smith's position began; and when is it expected to be completed.

Vernon Coaker: Work commenced on 5 October 2006 and continues. Completion depends upon finalising the data collection and assessment.

Road Traffic Offences: Fraud

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were successfully prosecuted for  (a) illegally clamping vehicles on private land and  (b) fraudulently issuing penalty tickets in each year since 2004.

Vernon Coaker: There is no specific offence of illegally clamping a vehicle on private land or fraudulently issuing a penalty ticket for parking on private land. The Private Security Industry Act 2001 provides for the regulation of vehicle immobilisers carrying out licensable activities and for a range of offences which include using an unlicensed wheel-clamper. The most common offence prosecuted under the Act is "conduct prohibited without a licence". This would include carrying out, without a licence, not only wheel-clamping and related activities but also the other types of activity which are licensable under the 2001 Act, such as manned guarding and door supervision. Numbers of prosecutions and convictions for 2004 to 2006 for these offences and for the offence of carrying out conduct prohibited without a licence are shown in the following table. The data for the second and third categories does not break down further the licensable activities to which the prosecutions are related.
	
		
			  Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts and found guilty at all courts of offences under the 2001 Private Security Industry Act 2001, in England and Wales, 2004 to 2006( 1, 2) 
			2004  2005  2006 
			  Offence  Statute  Proceeded against  Found guilty  Proceeded against  Found guilty  Proceeded against  Found guilty 
			 Offence of using unlicensed security operatives Private Security Industry Act 2001 S.5(1)(4) — — 3 — 13 8 
			 Offence of using unlicensed wheel clampers operative Private Security Industry Act 2001 S.6(1)(4) — — 2 — — — 
			 Right to use approved status Private Security Industry Act 2001 S.16(2)(a)&(4) 5 4 1 1 1 1 
			 Imposition of requirements for approval Private Security Industry Act 2001 S.17(2)(a)&(4) 6 6 159 65 141 84 
			 Conduct prohibited without a licence Private Security Industry Act 2001 S.3(1)(6) — — 1 — 1 — 
			 Powers of entry and inspection Private Security Industry Act 2001 S.19(5)(a)(b) & (c) & (7) — — — — — — 
			 False information Private Security Industry Act 2001 S.22(1)(b)(2) — — — — — — 
			 Total  11 10 168 66 156 93 
			 (1) These data are on the principal offence basis. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

Bangladesh: Human Rights

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the imprisonment of three professors at Dhaka University in Bangladesh for two years for taking part in protests which contravened the emergency rule of the government of Bangladesh; and what assessment he has made of such reports.

Kim Howells: On 22 January 2008, three teachers from Dhaka university were sentenced to two years' imprisonment for taking part in protests that contravened the emergency rules. On the same day, the teachers were released following a Presidential decree of clemency. Throughout our engagement with the Caretaker government, we have consistently emphasised that, in creating the conditions for credible elections and sustainable democracy, it is necessary to retain respect for individuals' rights and democratic and judicial processes.

Business: Non-domestic Rates

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar, of 11 December 2007,  Official Report, column 536W, on business: non-domestic rates, what multiplier is levied in each business improvement district that is in operation.

John Healey: For 2007-08, the national non-domestic multiplier is 44.4p and the small business multiplier is 44.1p. These apply in all areas in England, irrespective of whether a business improvement district is in operation. It is for those involved in BIDs to agree on the amount of BID levies and how they should be calculated.

Local Government Finance: Derbyshire

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the revenue support grant for Derbyshire councils has been in each of the last eight years.

John Healey: The following table shows the amount of formula grant, which comprises revenue support grant, redistributed business rates, principal formula police grant, SSA reduction grant (SSA review), SSA reduction grant (police funding review) and central support protection grant, where appropriate, for Derbyshire councils for the period 2000-01 to 2007-08.
	
		
			  £ million 
			  Local authority  2000-01  2001-02  2002-03  Amended 2003-04  Amended 2004-05  Amended 2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 Derbyshire 360.961 375.573 378.324 426.869 445.456 475.817 130.773 137.564 
			 Derby 158.471 164.639 166.577 185.398 193.665 205.760 88.879 92.353 
			 Amber Valley 6.434 6.901 7.175 7.871 7.396 7.755 8.981 9.348 
			 Bolsover 4.877 5.177 5.386 5.878 5.615 5.999 7.251 7.637 
			 Chesterfield 7.259 7.485 7.660 8.241 7.717 7.966 9.457 9.848 
			 Ere wash 6.277 6.587 6.750 7.398 7.182 7.647 8.869 9.314 
			 High Peak 5.385 5.588 5.774 6.339 5.768 5.949 6.723 6.945 
			 North-east Derbyshire 5.064 5.262 5.387 5.915 5.763 6.099 7.238 7.592 
			 South Derbyshire 4.450 4.612 4.727 5.199 5.048 5.415 6.324 6.703 
			 Derbyshire Dales 4.141 4.355 4.493 4.545 4.083 4.208 4.652 4.690 
			 Derbyshire Police 89.611 93.963 95.021 97.936 101.157 105.241 102.023 105.817 
			 Derbyshire Fire — — — — 17.613 18.540 16.185 16.920 
		
	
	Please note that the amount of formula grant that each authority receives is not directly comparable year-on-year due to changes in funding and functions over this period.

Local Government: Standards

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 11 December 2007,  Official Report, column 552W, on local government: standards, what additional information local authorities will need to report to support national policy development.

John Healey: We are working with other Government Departments to identify those data collections which are to be discontinued, in line with the commitment made in the Local Government White Paper, to limit data collection to that which is necessary for reasons such as financial management and policy development, and the 30 per cent. target for reduction in data burdens announced on 9 October 2007 as part of the comprehensive spending review.

Aggregates: Recycling

Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the level of production of recycled aggregate in each year since 2001; and if he will make a statement.

Joan Ruddock: Communities and local government carry out a biennial survey on the 'Arisings and Use of Alternatives to Primary Aggregates in England'. The estimated production of recycled aggregates in England was 36.47 million tonnes in 2001, 39.60 million tonnes in 2003 and 42.07 million tonnes in 2005. No more recent figures are available.

Fly Tipping: Wirral

Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what the total cost of clean-up of fly tipping was in Wirral, South in  (a) 2007,  (b) 2003 and  (c) 1997;
	(2)  how many incidents of fly tipping there were in Wirral, South in the past  (a) year,  (b) five years and  (c) 10 years.

Joan Ruddock: holding answer 25 January 2008
	Data are only available from 2004 onwards.
	I have arranged for a table to be placed in the Library of the House showing the number of fly-tipping incidents, estimated clearance costs and prosecutions recorded in each local authority by local authorities on Flycapture for 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07.
	Following the release of the 2006-07 Flycapture statistics on 9 October 2007, this information has been sent to all MPs.
	It is also available to download electronically on DEFRA's Flycapture website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/localenv/flytipping/flycapture-data.htm

Whales

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  which other governments he plans to send copies of 'Protecting Whales—A Global Responsibility' document this year; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  to which other governments the 'Protecting Whales—A Global Responsibility' document has been sent; on which date the document was sent in each instance; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The UK has led efforts to recruit more conservation-minded countries to the International Whaling Commission (IWC) through our publication 'Protecting Whales—A Global Responsibility'. This publication has recently been updated and was re-released on 21 December 2007. In the coming weeks, posts will deliver the updated version to host governments, and will continue to engage in discussions with their counterparts on whaling at every appropriate opportunity.
	This year, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State (Hilary Benn) has written to 18 countries, encouraging them to join the IWC for the greater protection of whales.
	'Protecting Whales—A Global Responsibility' has been sent to over 60 countries, both anti and pro-whaling, encouraging them to join the effort to protect these species. Listing these countries could compromise our efforts to persuade them to join the IWC and adopt an anti-whaling stance.

Civil Service: Codes of Practice

Greg Hands: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster pursuant to the answer of 14 January 2008,  Official Report, column 916W, on official hospitality, 
	(1)  if he will amend the  (a) Ministerial Code and  (b) Civil Service Code to introduce specific guidance on making bets (i) with and (ii) via a commercial organisation on political events;
	(2)  if he will initiate an investigation into whether any breaches of the Civil Service Code occurred in relation to movements in the political betting market on 6 October 2007 on the date of any future general election.

Tom Watson: The Government believe the principles set out in the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Code continue to be appropriate. No further action is planned.

Honours: Criminal Investigation

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster pursuant to the answer of 10 January 2008,  Official Report, columns 755-56W, on honours: criminal investigation, and with reference to the letter of 18 December 2007 from the Cabinet Secretary to the Chairman of the Public Administration Committee, what the cost was to the public purse of the external legal advice and support for the right hon. Tony Blair.

Edward Miliband: The right hon. Tony Blair received no external legal advice and support. Therefore there was no cost to the public purse.

Ministers

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster 
	(1)  how many Ministers have held more than  (a) one,  (b) two,  (c) three,  (d) four,  (e) five,  (f) six,  (g) seven,  (h) eight,  (i) nine and  (j) 10 ministerial positions in the last 10 years;
	(2)  how many ministerial positions there were in each of the last 10 years, broken down by government department.

Tom Watson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Cabinet Office (Edward Miliband) to the hon. Member for Somerton and Frome (Mr. Heath) on 17 September 2007,  Official Report, column 2225W.

Ministers: Pay

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what increase in Ministerial pay there was in each of the last 10 years; and what percentage of the 1997 level of Ministerial pay each increase represents.

Tom Watson: Ministerial salaries are paid in accordance with the Ministerial and Other Salaries Act 1975. Details of ministerial salaries are available at:
	http://www.parliament.uk/documents/upload/m06.pdf
	and in the Library of the House.

Non-Departmental Public Bodies

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster 
	(1)  when he will publish information on the number and expenditure of non-departmental public bodies for 2007;
	(2)  how many non-departmental public bodies there were in each of the last 10 years, broken down by government department.

Tom Watson: Information on non-departmental public bodies is published annually by the Cabinet Office. Information covering the period 1998 to 2006 appears in the "Public Bodies" publications. These can be downloaded from the civil service website at:
	http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/about/public/bodies.asp
	Information for 2007 will be published shortly.

Youth Volunteering

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster pursuant to the answer of 15 January 2008,  Official Report, column 1172W, on youth volunteering, what  (a) local,  (b) regional and  (c) national organisations v has commissioned to provide volunteering opportunities.

Phil Hope: Details of the projects funded by v can be found on their website at:
	www.wearev.com
	Copies of the list of funded projects have also been placed in the Library for the reference of Members.
	The Office of the Third Sector have also provided funding in this financial year to the following organisations that provide or promote youth volunteering opportunities: Youthnet UK (£461,300), National Youth Agency (£307,500), Youth Action Network (£153,800) and the British Youth Council (£92,300).

Assessments: Manpower

Tim Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what support is made available from central government funds for examination officers; at what grades they are employed by local authorities; what arrangements are in place for  (a) their continuing professional development and  (b) the monitoring of standards; what steps he has taken to ensure recruitment and retention to support the introduction of diplomas; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: Examination officers are employed directly by schools and colleges. The grade at which they are employed is determined by their job description, which should be referenced against nationally agreed scales for salary and grading based on the specified duties and levels of responsibility.
	The National Assessment Agency (NAA), a division of the qualifications and curriculum authority, is responsible for supporting the operational delivery of examinations locally, and within this remit to support examination officers. The NAA provides training courses for new examination officers, a field team which provides tailored support and advice, and online resources. A specific programme on the administration of the diploma is supporting retention through keeping examination officers fully informed about the arrangements for these new qualifications.
	The monitoring of operational standards within the examinations system is undertaken by the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ), representing the awarding bodies which provide general qualifications.

Autism

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he plans to take to improve the services offered by his Department for people with autism and Aspergers' syndrome in the next 10 years.

Kevin Brennan: The Department for Children, Schools and Families does not offer services for people with autism and Asperger's syndrome directly. However, the Department, through the national strategies, will continue to implement its long-term special educational needs (SEN) strategy removing barriers to achievement, aimed at bringing improvements in provision for all children with SEN, including those with autistic spectrum disorders. Part of the strategy is the inclusion development programme which in its next phase will focus on autism, developing practical materials to help teachers address autistic children's needs and providing cascaded training for school staff. The Department's Autism Working Group will be involved in this initiative and will continue to play a part in the Department's support for improvements in autism provision.
	The Department will continue to work with partners to improve provision for disabled children and their families. Under aiming high for disabled children over the coming three years we will be working with local authorities and others to improve information for parents, the provision of short breaks and support for young people at transition to adulthood, all extremely important areas of provision for children with autism and their families. We will also work with the voluntary, independent and statutory organisations represented by the Autism Education Trust, which we are helping to establish with set-up funding, to bring further improvements to provision for autistic children and their families.

Teenage Pregnancy Unit

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  whether the Teenage Pregnancy Unit has responsibility to develop measures to combat, or respond to, incidents of violence against women;
	(2)  what research the Teenage Pregnancy Unit has conducted into the proportion of pregnant teenagers who are victims of  (a) rape and  (b) domestic violence.

Beverley Hughes: The Teenage Pregnancy Unit in the Department does not have responsibility to develop measures to combat, or respond to, incidents of violence against women generally. This is the responsibility of my right hon. Friend, the Home Secretary.
	No research has been commissioned by the Department for Children, Schools and Families specifically into the proportion of pregnant teenagers who are the victims of rape and domestic violence. However, we know from research that the Teenage Pregnancy Unit in the Department has done those teenagers experiencing coercive and exploitative relationships are at much greater risk of early pregnancy. That is why in 'Teenage Pregnancy Next Steps: Guidance for Local Authorities and Primary Care trusts on Effective Delivery of Local Strategies' published by DFES in 2006 we emphasised that LAs should have mechanisms in place to identify the young woman most at risk of such relationships and early pregnancy.

Truancy: Fines

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many parents have been fined for failing to ensure their children attend school in each of the last 12 months; what the total amount of fines for each of these months was; and what the  (a) maximum and  (b) minimum fine was.

Kevin Brennan: The information is not available in the form requested.
	The Department collects data on the number of penalty notices issued by local authorities to parents in respect of the offence of failing to ensure regular school attendance. The latest available data (for the school year 2006-07) shows that 14,625 parents were issued with penalty notices. The penalty is £50 if paid within 28 days rising to £100 if paid after 28 days but within 42 days.
	The Ministry of Justice also collects data on the number of parents prosecuted under sections 444(1) and 444(1A) (the aggravated offence of parents knowing that their children are not attending school regularly) of the Education Act 1996. In 2006, there were 2,952 parents who received fines from the courts after being found guilty of the offence. We do not collect information on the amount of the fines imposed by the courts.

China

Andrew Mitchell: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  what discussions he held with the Chinese Government on Burma on his recent trip to China;
	(2)  what discussions he held with the Chinese Government on Sudan on his recent trip to China.

Robert Smith: To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he had with the Government of China during his recent visit to that country on the political situation in Burma.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Members to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Orkney and Shetland (Mr. Carmichael) and the hon. Member for Southend, West (Mr. Amess) on 25 January 2008,  Official Report, column 2280W.

Departmental E-mail

Mark Hoban: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 18 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1229W, on departmental e-mail, how many email accounts he has for official purposes.

Francis Maude: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 18 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1229W, on departmental e-mail, whether he uses an e-mail account to send e-mail to civil servants and ministerial colleagues in the course of his duties.

Gordon Brown: I am in regular contact with ministerial colleagues and civil servants either directly or through my office.

Departmental Freedom of Information

Norman Baker: To ask the Prime Minister what percentage of Freedom of Information requests received by his Office have given rise to responses that have been published by his Office.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office (Mr. Watson) today.

Departmental Information Officers

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Prime Minister how many  (a) press and  (b) communications officers the Prime Minister's Office employed in each of the last 10 years.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Epsom and Ewell (Chris Grayling) and the hon. Member for Fareham (Mr. Hoban) on 15 October 2007,  Official Report, column 819W.
	For previous years, I refer the hon. Member to the answers given by my predecessor (right hon. Tony Blair) on 30 November 2006,  Official Report, columns 895-96W, and 22 March 2004,  Official Report, columns 559-60W.

Ministerial Powers

Peter Bone: To ask the Prime Minister what the contingency arrangements are for  (a) leadership of the Government and  (b) control of the UK nuclear deterrent in circumstances of the unforseen incapacity or death of the Prime Minister; and if he will make a statement.

Gordon Brown: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 12 September 2007,  Official Report, column 2103W.

Clearsprings Support Service

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what steps he has taken to ensure that there is no risk to public safety from offenders and defendants accommodated in Clearsprings' bail and accommodation support service.

David Hanson: The Government have public protection as their highest priority. Sex offenders and others who pose a significant risk are excluded from the Clearsprings service. The courts decide whether a defendant can be bailed into the service. The only sentenced prisoners released into the service are on home detention curfew.

Data Protection

Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has to bring forward proposals to strengthen the protection of personal data held by public authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Wills: My Department will launch a consultation early in 2008 on proposals to strengthen the Data Protection Act. This includes measures to enable the Information Commissioner to inspect public sector organisations without prior consent; new penalties for the most serious breaches of the Data Protection Act and proposals for funding the Commissioner's Office to carry out the work.

Court of Protection

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the average length of time taken by the Court of Protection to deal with an application in the most recent period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: Since the implementation of the Mental Capacity Act (MCA) on 1 October 2007 we have received 4,871 applications to the Court of Protection. In the same period the court has issued 3,163 orders although many of these will have been for applications on legacy cases and received prior to 1 October 2007.
	Where an application to the court requires an oral hearing the Court of Protection aims to list it to be heard within 15 weeks and all cases received since 1 October are within this target. Where there is no hearing required the Court of Protection aims for customers to have received a direction within 21 weeks and new cases are broadly in line with this target.
	These are the maximum time limits and allow for the serving of papers by the parties involved and the submission of their evidence. Cases can be dealt with more speedily than this if these processes do not take the full time allowed for them under the court's rules. However, targets assume that parties will take the full time available to them to serve papers and provide further evidence. There is also a process to allow for interim directions to be made during this period if a judge feels it is appropriate.
	There are delays due to high volumes with some legacy cases although every effort is being made to identify urgent cases and deal with them as a priority. We have provided additional resources to the court team in December and again in January and expect the backlog of legacy applications to have been cleared by the end of February.
	It is impossible at this stage to give an average time for completing an application as the new structure has not been in place for 21 weeks—our main target for issuing directions. We will of course be able to provide fuller information later in the year when we have the data to work with.

Driving Offences: Convictions

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what recent representations he has received on sentencing policy on the offence of causing death by careless driving.

David Hanson: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor (Mr. Straw) has not received any representations specifically on sentencing policy on the offence of causing death by careless driving. We have, however, received letters from MPs, road safety campaigners and members of the public on the draft sentencing guideline published on 9 January by the Sentencing Guideline Council (SGC). The guideline covers two existing offences of causing death by dangerous driving and causing death by careless driving under the influence of drink or drugs, plus two new offences (yet to be implemented) of causing death by careless driving and causing death by driving when unlicensed, disqualified or uninsured.
	The guidelines are currently subject to consultation with the Government, the Justice Select Committee and other interested parties. We are considering the guidelines carefully and will respond in due course. The consultation period ends in March and should lead to publication of a definitive guideline later in the year.

Electoral System

Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether the issues raised in the recently published review of electoral systems will form a part of the Governance of Britain consultation process.

Michael Wills: The purpose of the review was to consider the experience of new voting systems introduced in the United Kingdom since 1997, to contribute to the existing knowledge of voting systems in the United Kingdom. As set out in the written ministerial statement on 24 January 2008,  Official Report, column 61WS, the Government considers that at this point, it would be premature to discuss reforms to the electoral system for the Commons while the voting system for a reformed and substantially or fully elected House of Lords is still to be determined. Good progress is being made on the cross-party talks on Lords reform and the Government intends to publish a White Paper in the first part of 2008 reflecting the outcome of these discussions.

Prisons: Crimes of Violence

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) prisoner on prisoner and  (b) prisoner on officer assaults were recorded in each year since 2002, broken down by prison establishment; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: The information requested is set out in the tables and subject to important qualifications. The Prison Service Incident Reporting System processes high volumes of data which are constantly being updated. The numbers provide a good indication of overall numbers but should not be interpreted as absolute.
	Assault data is complex and may include threatening behaviour, projection of bodily fluids and other non-contact incidents. Information on assault incidents may involve more than one assaulter or more than one victim. In a proportion of incidents only the victim is known.
	Assault information is recorded at establishment level in four categories: Prisoner on Prisoner, Prisoner on Officer, Prisoner on Other and Other. Recording of assaults on prison officers sometimes includes assaults on other prison staff.
	
		
			  (a) Prisoner on Prisoner 
			  Prison name  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007( 1) 
			 Acklington 49 39 33 38 73 65 
			 Albany 3 5 15 3 4 (2)— 
			 Altcourse 163 159 183 194 195 223 
			 Ashfield 429 271 304 500 625 650 
			 Ashwell 8 9 15 17 9 17 
			 Askham Grange 1 — 1 — 1 1 
			 Aylesbury 44 26 21 78 80 76 
			 Bedford 49 44 49 41 55 36 
			 Belmarsh 60 76 67 53 51 25 
			 Birmingham 90 105 139 103 117 105 
			 Blakenhurst 271 256 192 149 151 212 
			 Blantyre House — — — 1 — — 
			 Blundeston 36 39 26 14 15 33 
			 Brinsford 281 304 326 344 187 184 
			 Bristol 107 84 100 95 85 72 
			 Brixton 130 120 106 73 38 56 
			 Brockhill 23 25 19 28 20 8 
			 Bronzefield — — 37 92 113 98 
			 Buckley Hall 45 72 76 62 57 36 
			 Bullingdon 59 40 36 59 45 68 
			 Bullwood Hall — — — 20 16 10 
			 Camp Hill 47 67 51 54 55 (2)— 
			 Canterbury 9 5 12 15 13 19 
			 Cardiff 46 50 53 50 47 25 
			 Castington 363 312 384 361 360 383 
			 Channings Wood 12 21 22 38 53 52 
			 Chelmsford 60 62 82 68 105 32 
			 Coldingley 2 — 16 7 18 11 
			 Cookham Wood 7 12 7 2 4 5 
			 Dartmoor 25 20 11 29 26 25 
			 Deerbolt 154 167 205 164 152 159 
			 Doncaster 87 39 77 94 144 124 
			 Dorchester 9 13 11 19 18 31 
			 Dovegate 40 56 73 66 66 54 
			 Downview 13 6 14 29 25 11 
			 Drake Hall 3 13 7 9 6 18 
			 Durham 65 59 79 89 146 126 
			 East Sutton Park — — 3 — — — 
			 Eastwood Park 14 23 31 51 47 15 
			 Edmunds Hill — 47 26 23 27 25 
			 Elmley 88 84 104 134 100 123 
			 Erlestoke 6 10 26 26 22 35 
			 Everthorpe 9 5 20 42 65 69 
			 Exeter 37 37 26 34 35 24 
			 Featherstone 60 51 54 69 70 90 
			 Feltham 459 569 576 549 476 425 
			 Ford 7 2 20 17 6 6 
			 Forest Bank 304 308 397 430 339 213 
			 Foston Hall 17 19 26 26 23 28 
			 Frankland 15 21 18 24 26 31 
			 Full Sutton 8 15 27 37 44 50 
			 Garth 36 23 27 59 63 64 
			 Gartree 1 1 2 9 8 12 
			 Glen Parva 222 241 230 269 341 362 
			 Gloucester 56 36 62 41 56 47 
			 Grendon/Spring Hill 4 5 4 2 2 5 
			 Guys Marsh 43 41 49 43 57 72 
			 Haslar 5 1 — 2 1 6 
			 Haverigg 19 17 22 30 41 68 
			 Hewell Grange — 1 6 — 1 3 
			 High Down 85 97 119 101 134 112 
			 Highpoint 130 82 91 72 74 79 
			 Hindley 88 177 63 112 348 497 
			 Hollesley Bay 179 45 1 4 2 3 
			 Holloway 98 91 80 94 121 112 
			 Holme House 71 89 69 86 98 123 
			 Hull 84 91 168 166 121 138 
			 Huntercombe 44 77 79 95 184 279 
			 Kennet — — — — — 4 
			 Kingston — 2 3 1 3 1 
			 Kirkham 3 1 4 3 1 3 
			 Kirklevington — — — — 1 — 
			 Lancaster 12 11 4 10 10 19 
			 Lancaster Farms 130 17 185 435 363 337 
			 Leeds 96 148 136 109 104 92 
			 Leicester 70 59 53 42 51 34 
			 Lewes 89 104 60 62 73 61 
			 Leyhill — 3 5 6 7 2 
			 Lincoln 81 68 47 56 60 87 
			 Lindholme 17 43 42 33 37 51 
			 Littlehey 31 32 37 41 39 37 
			 Liverpool 94 109 118 127 162 225 
			 Long Lartin 16 17 16 36 38 43 
			 Low Newton 94 117 89 62 68 63 
			 Lowdham Grange 20 19 20 37 73 41 
			 Maidstone 16 10 21 14 11 17 
			 Manchester 191 217 182 142 172 127 
			 Moorland 177 139 34 94 89 90 
			 Moorland Open 28 11 3 8 1 1 
			 Morton Hall 7 13 16 9 15 12 
			 Mount 17 25 16 55 48 43 
			 New Hall 47 32 77 84 44 56 
			 North Sea Camp — — 4 3 7 2 
			 Northallerton 80 82 84 104 82 96 
			 Norwich 132 128 11 20 40 12 
			 Nottingham 61 66 74 64 55 84 
			 Onley 516 509 161 152 153 214 
			 Parc 198 233 227 247 241 315 
			 Parkhurst 16 34 38 37 33 (2)— 
			 Pentonville 129 165 120 139 155 139 
			 Peterborough — — — 100 221 221 
			 Portland 71 61 125 154 127 189 
			 Preston 23 71 62 77 78 104 
			 Ranby 39 38 19 30 52 42 
			 Reading 7 23 25 76 57 44 
			 Risley 39 60 107 103 102 107 
			 Rochester 32 51 102 78 100 75 
			 Rye Hill 10 19 40 53 65 66 
			 Send 4 5 2 17 11 6 
			 Shepton Mallet 10 3 3 1 — 4 
			 Shrewsbury 35 44 41 50 29 39 
			 Stafford 11 19 41 58 39 76 
			 Standford Hill 2 3 2 7 5 4 
			 Stocken 37 36 33 39 43 58 
			 Stoke Heath 241 137 239 438 506 526 
			 Styal 13 9 28 25 39 58 
			 Sudbury 1 1 1 2 — 4 
			 Swaleside 32 25 25 32 41 51 
			 Swansea 9 16 16 20 30 19 
			 Swinfen Hall 127 110 96 104 89 87 
			 Thorn Cross 56 39 7 19 143 83 
			 Usk\Prescoed 1 2 1 3 1 8 
			 Verne 10 13 16 22 9 10 
			 Wakefield 10 8 18 26 24 18 
			 Wandsworth 54 51 74 77 69 93 
			 Warren Hill — 93 162 256 268 317 
			 Wayland 23 65 51 59 49 58 
			 Wealstun 9 14 7 9 28 21 
			 Weare 48 52 55 23 — — 
			 Wellingborough 12 17 12 30 49 35 
			 Werrington 114 129 104 139 143 141 
			 Wetherby 41 175 414 492 403 349 
			 Whatton 3 9 5 2 8 15 
			 Whitemoor 30 18 15 21 21 30 
			 Winchester 43 65 57 47 35 26 
			 Wolds 52 27 41 23 30 49 
			 Woodhill 7 27 51 67 57 52 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 69 89 129 142 147 136 
			 Wymott — 8 3 9 23 28 
		
	
	
		
			  (b) Prisoner on Officer 
			  Prison name  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007( 1) 
			 Acklington 2 3 3 5 7 9 
			 Albany 2 3 — — 3 (2)— 
			 Altcourse 45 43 40 44 36 50 
			 Ashfield 124 62 71 152 127 82 
			 Ashwell 1 1 — — 4 2 
			 Aylesbury 12 15 5 15 18 11 
			 Bedford 17 13 10 14 27 12 
			 Belmarsh 82 52 43 34 22 22 
			 Birmingham 53 58 83 93 78 69 
			 Blakenhurst 10 25 51 44 31 35 
			 Blundeston 3 2 4 7 7 1 
			 Brinsford 24 31 26 17 8 11 
			 Bristol 51 25 45 28 41 14 
			 Brixton 73 48 62 49 37 32 
			 Brockhill 13 5 10 14 9 3 
			 Bronzefield — — 17 85 77 41 
			 Buckley Hall 12 36 16 23 10 11 
			 Bullingdon 24 23 14 15 22 21 
			 Bullwood Hall 1 — — 8 6 2 
			 Camp Hill 8 12 8 12 5 (2)— 
			 Canterbury 4 7 4 4 3 4 
			 Cardiff 14 11 15 19 14 3 
			 Castington 53 52 53 50 42 41 
			 Channings Wood 3 4 10 8 7 15 
			 Chelmsford 25 15 21 37 51 21 
			 Coldingley — — — — 2 7 
			 Cookham Wood 2 14 5 3 1 2 
			 Dartmoor 10 9 5 11 7 8 
			 Deerbolt 9 5 25 32 21 34 
			 Doncaster 30 25 22 24 45 28 
			 Dorchester 2 4 2 9 9 8 
			 Dovegate 29 46 75 34 55 42 
			 Downview 10 6 7 29 9 11 
			 Drake Hall 1 — — 1 1 — 
			 Durham 24 34 29 41 43 57 
			 East Sutton Park — 1 1 — — — 
			 Eastwood Park 5 11 7 21 25 8 
			 Edmunds Hill — 9 20 9 13 2 
			 Elmley 23 25 20 30 17 27 
			 Erlestoke — — 2 2 2 9 
			 Everthorpe 2 2 2 9 13 12 
			 Exeter 12 11 2 7 11 8 
			 Featherstone 17 8 18 5 9 16 
			 Feltham 83 102 169 129 115 102 
			 Ford 1 3 7 5 2 3 
			 Forest Bank 39 62 75 82 50 33 
			 Foston Hall 28 14 8 11 25 25 
			 Frankland 12 5 13 9 10 18 
			 Full Sutton 7 11 11 17 13 8 
			 Garth 8 10 5 6 8 8 
			 Gartree — — 1 2 3 1 
			 Glen Parva 41 27 39 31 40 50 
			 Gloucester 12 13 6 12 13 6 
			 Grendon/Spring Hill — — — — — 1 
			 Guys Marsh 1 6 5 3 12 15 
			 Haverigg 2 6 2 1 4 17 
			 Hewell Grange — — — 2 — 1 
			 High Down 59 45 56 38 69 65 
			 Highpoint 46 20 18 13 22 19 
			 Hindley 25 23 13 30 55 41 
			 Hollesley Bay 18 4 3 — — — 
			 Holloway 88 88 93 78 99 87 
			 Holme House 13 20 18 27 24 20 
			 Hull 16 27 29 33 23 30 
			 Huntercombe 15 18 15 14 32 22 
			 Kingston 2 1 — 1 2 — 
			 Kirkham 1 — — — — 2 
			 Lancaster 1 — 3 1 2 1 
			 Lancaster Farms 20 9 27 46 51 31 
			 Leeds 56 75 39 36 16 18 
			 Leicester 15 11 5 7 16 7 
			 Lewes 14 20 10 15 13 13 
			 Leyhill — — 1 1 — 3 
			 Lincoln 20 11 21 20 15 22 
			 Lindholme 5 18 5 12 13 19 
			 Littlehey 6 12 10 10 5 2 
			 Liverpool 37 45 35 21 18 30 
			 Long Lartin 7 5J 5 15 11 15 
			 Low Newton 27 16 24 27 19 17 
			 Lowdham Grange 4 4 12 16 34 39 
			 Maidstone 2 6 5 1 — 5 
			 Manchester 53 58 59 69 65 77 
			 Moorland 22 21 13 20 16 13 
			 Morton Hall 4 1 3 2 5 1 
			 Mount 5 13 7 8 15 19 
			 New Hall 25 21 14 23 57 45 
			 North Sea Camp 1 2 — — — 1 
			 Northallerton 6 11 13 10 6 5 
			 Norwich 24 24 17 18 17 1 
			 Nottingham 12 15 28 12 22 43 
			 Onley 68 86 13 27 29 22 
			 Parc 27 55 57 44 48 48 
			 Parkhurst 9 18 16 14 2 (2)— 
			 Pentonville 113 90 94 120 59 57 
			 Peterborough — — — 72 134 111 
			 Portland 22 15 39 37 41 37 
			 Preston 10 9 17 24 29 44 
			 Ranby 9 8 3 3 16 16 
			 Reading 6 7 16 14 11 9 
			 Risley 15 18 26 32 28 23 
			 Rochester 5 15 16 23 13 4 
			 Rye Hill 18 20 38 65 47 41 
			 Send 2 4 — 2 3 1 
			 Shepton Mallet 2 1 — — — 1 
			 Shrewsbury 3 11 3 3 6 5 
			 Stafford 8 10 6 13 11 8 
			 Standford Hill — — — — 1 1 
			 Stocken 10 9 8 12 7 9 
			 Stoke Heath 47 20 37 52 63 65 
			 Styal 4 7 12 13 32 45 
			 Sudbury — 2 — — 1 — 
			 Swaleside 29 17 16 7 10 5 
			 Swansea 5 6 4 3 5 — 
			 Swinfen Hall 7 8 4 10 9 9 
			 Thorn Cross 1 3 1 1 3 1 
			 Usk\Prescoed — — — — 1 1 
			 Verne 1 1 5 3 — — 
			 Wakefield 7 7 7 9 8 12 
			 Wandsworth 79 73 84 86 36 31 
			 Warren Hill — 12 19 34 35 46 
			 Wayland 7 11 8 2 9 10 
			 Wealstun — 2 — 3 2 6 
			 Weare 9 10 6 4 — — 
			 Wellingborough 1 1 1 16 13 5 
			 Werrington 5 21 18 19 19 12 
			 Wetherby 9 11 70 66 56 34 
			 Whatton — 1 1 — 4 11 
			 Whitemoor 22 15 16 18 10 21 
			 Winchester 13 13 13 10 10 3 
			 Wolds 12 7 10 3 8 2 
			 Woodhill 16 35 39 71 68 52 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 54 37 69 57 54 67 
			 Wymott — 1 — 4 4 4 
			 (1) There is a slight lag in reporting which means that the provisional number mentioned here will rise a little in the coming months. (2) NOM - CNOMIS (offender management information system) sites where data is not available at time of compilation.

African Union: Overseas Aid

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the UK's financial contribution to the African Union is in 2007-08; what this contribution has been used to fund; and what plans the Government have to provide funding for these budget lines in 2008-09.

Douglas Alexander: DFID has provided £20,000 in 2007-08 to the African Union Commission (AUC) to support the upgrade of their procurement manual to international standards.
	DFID have approved £500,000 over two years towards the African Union Commission's Institutional Transformation programme. The first instalment (£125,000) was due in 2007-08, however, the AUC are still to agree to the DFID funding arrangement.
	The Africa Conflict Prevention programme has allocated £1 million for the African Union Peace and Security Department for 2007-08 and has allocated £1.25 million for 2008-09.

African Union: Overseas Aid

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether the Commission for Africa Report recommendation that donors agree to fund at least 50 per cent. of the African Union's (AU's) Peace Fund from 2005 onwards has been implemented; what representations he has made to international donors to encourage further funding for the AU's Peace Fund; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: The UK supported the Commission for Africa's recommendation that at least 50 per cent. of the African Union Peace Fund should be supported by donors. A payment of £5.5 million was made in 2006 through the Africa Peace Fund for the AU Mission in Sudan (AMIS). However, as both the scale of AU peacekeeping operations increased, and donors increased their support, other funding channels have been developed with the AU, including further contributions for peacekeeping operations in Somalia and Sudan. This provides greater operational effectiveness and accountability for donor funds, and means that less use of the Peace Fund is likely to be made in future.
	The UK continues to work with other donors, in the EU, and at the UN to find a mechanism that ensures predictable financing for AU peace work, while providing appropriate levels of accountability.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps have been taken by his Department in co-operation with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform to raise awareness amongst British companies which operate in conflict-affected countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's guidelines for multinational enterprises and the risk awareness tool for multinational enterprises in weak governance zones; and if he will make a statement.

Douglas Alexander: The UK National Contact Point (NCP) undertakes a number of activities to promote the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the OECD's Risk Awareness Tool. This includes use of the Government's corporate social responsibility website, the provision of materials to DFID offices and FCO missions to raise awareness amongst British business overseas, and attending meetings and speaking at conferences. In addition, FCO, BERR and DFID Ministers have written to a wide range of companies to raise awareness of the guidelines and state HMG's commitment to their effective implementation.
	The NCP is organising for key embassies and DFID country offices to provide a link to the guidelines and risk awareness tool on their websites. The NCP has also agreed to provide £10,000 to the OECD to support a web portal to disseminate the risk awareness tool, and is sponsoring the upcoming Chatham House conference on corporate social responsibility.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff in his Department are working to promote the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's guidelines for multinational enterprises.

Douglas Alexander: The UK's National Contact Point (NCP) for the OECD guidelines is currently managed by officials from the Department of Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), Department for International Development (DFID) and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). BERR dedicate one full-time official to working on the NCP and are in the process of recruiting a second. The Foreign Office and DFID both currently contribute 20 per cent. of one official's time as core resource. From time to time additional staff resources are deployed as necessary.

UN Peacebuilding Commission

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the UN Peacebuilding Commission in carrying out its functions.

Douglas Alexander: Although the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) was initially slow to start, over the last year it has begun to provide useful support to peacebuilding in Burundi and Sierra Leone, the first two countries on its agenda. "Consolidating the Peace?", an external NGO review in June 2007, found that the PBC had made a contribution to improved governance in Burundi by facilitating a government-civil society dialogue on peacebuilding; though it also outlined a number of challenges. I have placed a copy of this report in the Library of both Houses.
	Over the next year, for the PBC to continue to be effective, the strategic frameworks for peacebuilding agreed with the Governments of Burundi and Sierra Leone will need to be translated into action on the ground, and a framework will need to be agreed and implemented in Guinea-Bissau, which was referred to the PBC in December 2007. With the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), DFID will continue to play an active role in the PBC.

Alcoholic Drinks: Greater London

Boris Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many alcohol-related admissions there were to each London hospital  (a) in total and  (b) of patients aged under (i) 18 and (ii) 16 years in each year since 1997.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 15 January 2008
	I refer the hon. Member to the answers given on 13 December 2007,  Official Report, column 871W, to my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne, Central (Jim Cousins), and on 8 January 2008,  Official Report, column 461W, to my hon. Friend the Member for South Cambridgeshire (Mr. Lansley).

Autism

Mike Gapes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to take to improve the services offered by his Department for people with autism and Aspergers' syndrome in the next 10 years.

Ivan Lewis: The Department has set out in "Putting People First—a shared vision and commitment to the transformation of adult social care" an ambitious and radical programme for independent living for all adults with support needs, including people with autism and Aspergers syndrome. This shared vision articulates the common aims and values that will guide the transformation of adult social care. The goal is that everyone—including people with autism and Aspergers syndrome—will have the maximum choice, control and power over the support services they receive.
	"Aiming high for disabled children: better support for families" similarly aims to integrate services to ensure that every disabled child can have the best start in life.
	It is for local commissioners to ensure their populations benefit from improvements to the provision of care for people with autistic spectrum disorders and Aspergers syndrome, using the increasing resources this Government have made available for social care, based on their assessment of the needs of their local populations.

Health Services: West Sussex

Francis Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will take steps to inform the NHS bodies concerned that the terms of reference of any review of health services in north eastern West Sussex and eastern Surrey should not rule out the possibility of a new Horsham and Crawley Hospital.

Dawn Primarolo: Primary care trusts (PCTs) are responsible for planning and commissioning local services, including reviews of local health services. South East Coast Strategic Health Authority has confirmed to officials that any review by local PCTs and other relevant national health service organisations will take account of all viable options.
	Where it is agreed that the proposals to reconfigure services include any significant change to the way services are provided, local trusts have a duty to consult and involve the Overview and Scrutiny Committees (OSCs). OSCs take on the role of scrutiny of the NHS, both major changes and the ongoing operation and planning of services. Where the OSC disagree with decisions made by NHS organisations then it has the power to refer the decision to the Secretary of State.

Hospitals: Standards

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which hospitals have come under special measures since May 2005; which consultancy firm was brought in for each case; and how much was spent on the consultancy in each case.

Ben Bradshaw: We have assumed in this case that the term 'special measures' refers to the financially challenged trusts.
	As identified in the Department's 2006-07 The (4th Quarter) report:
	"At the end of 2006-07 the Department of Health identified 17 national health service trusts that are deemed to be in financial "special measures' because of the severity of the financial challenges that they face".
	The following table outlines the cost and the consultancy company involved with each of the 17 financially challenged trusts.
	
		
			  Total costs of financially challenged trust review 
			  Organisation  Consultancy firm contracted  Cost to the NHS (£) 
			 Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust PriceWaterhouseCoopers 83,112 
			 University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust KPMG 277,961 
			 Royal Wolverhampton Hospital NHS Trust Ernst and Young 251,567 
			 Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust PriceWaterhouseCoopers 80,000 
			 Bromley Hospitals National Health Service Trust KPMG 96,884 
			 Queen Mary's Sidcup NHS Trust KPMG 96,884 
			 The Lewisham Hospital NHS Trust KPMG 96,884 
			 Queen Elizabeth Hospital NHS Trust KPMG 96,884 
			 Whipps Cross University Hospital NHS Trust Ernst and Young 124,652 
			 Barkering Havering and Redbridge Hospital NHS Trust Ernst and Young 161,394 
			 West Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust PriceWaterhouseCoopers 65,022 
			 Surrey and Sussex healthcare NHS Trust Ernst and Young 212,109 
			 The Royal West Sussex NHS Trust PriceWaterhouseCoopers 96,897 
			 North Bristol NHS Trust Ernst and Young 183,108 
			 Royal Cornwall Hospital NHS Trust KPMG 324,445 
			 Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust Ernst and Young 183,108 
			 Weston Area Health NHS Trust Ernst and Young and PriceWaterhouseCoopers 152,618 
			 Total cost to the NHS for the financially challenged trust reviews across England  2,583,531

Influenza

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many doses of the antiviral drug Tamiflu have been bought by each Government department for use by its staff in the event of an influenza pandemic.

Dawn Primarolo: Government Departments with a significant overseas presence, such as the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development, have bought Tamiflu for its members of staff and their dependents overseas. Approximately 48,000 treatment courses are available for use in the event of a pandemic. However, no Home Civil Service Departments have bought Tamiflu for the use of their staff.

Meat Hygiene Service: Finance

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the operating budget for the Meat Hygiene Service is in  (a) England,  (b) Wales,  (c) Scotland and  (d) each region in 2007-08.

Dawn Primarolo: The gross expenditure of the Meat Hygiene Service (MHS) is not budgeted by country. Analysis is however undertaken following the finalisation of the annual accounts to show gross expenditure by country. For 2006-07 this was:
	
		
			   Gross expenditure (£ million) 
			 England 70 
			 Wales 12 
			 Scotland 9 
		
	
	The MHS gross expenditure budgets by region for 2007-08 are:
	
		
			   Gross expenditure (£ million) 
			 North 18 
			 Central 22 
			 South and West 15 
			 Wales(1) 110 
			 Scotland(2) 10 
			 (1) The MHS Wales region includes parts of Gloucestershire and Herefordshire. (2) The MHS Scotland region includes part of Cumbria. 
		
	
	The gross expenditure budget for the corporate overhead for 2007-08 is £14 million.

NHS: Allowances

Gordon Banks: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions have taken place on introducing an interim adjustment in mileage allowances payable to NHS staff before the national review group reports.

Ann Keen: holding answer 21 January 2008
	NHS Employers issued guidance on 10 December recommending increases to certain rates of national mileage allowances. This followed discussions between employer and staff representatives on 29 November. This is interim action, pending the outcome of the review of national health service mileage allowances being conducted by the NHS Staff Council.

Obesity: North East Region

Fraser Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what studies his Department commissioned on child obesity in the North East and its implications for the future health of people in the region in each of the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: The prevalence of childhood obesity is measured in the North East through the National Child Measurement Programme. This is a national programme through which the height and weight of children in reception (four and five-year-olds) and year six (ten and eleven-year-olds) throughout the country are measured. This data is used to inform local planning and commissioning of services for children as well as providing population-level surveillance data to allow analysis of trends in growth patterns and obesity.
	Assessment of the potential health impact will be made through a range of national studies. In particular, the Department has established the National Child Measurement Programme (which will report North East figures in 2008) as well as the Health Survey for England to measure obesity levels throughout England.
	The North East strategic health authority reports that there are a number of actions being taken forward locally to help reduce overweight and obesity in the North East. These include projects encouraging healthier eating, promoting exercise and weight management and offering support through a range of facilities, such as the Healthworks healthy living resource centre in Easington, which brings together a range of services under one roof. The aim of these are to ensure that important messages about diet, physical activity and behavioural changes are consistent, high quality and that interventions are based in primary care settings across the North East.

Patient Choice Schemes: Internet

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether Choose and Book supports Safari web browsers.

Ben Bradshaw: The patient-facing feature of choose and book, the patient web application, has now been certified compatible with all versions of Internet Explorer, and the latest version of Firefox, which together are used by of around 95 per cent. of internet users in the United Kingdom.
	Because of the number of different browser types and versions potentially available to internet users, priority has been given to certification of the application against the most popular browsers in the first instance. The Safari browser is used by only a small percentage of UK internet users and is not yet compatible but is expected to become compatible in due course.

Prozac: Expenditure

Quentin Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the expenditure of the NHS on Prozac was in the last 12 month period for which figures are available.

Ivan Lewis: Prozac is the trade name of the version of the antidepressant drug Fluoxetine marketed by Lilly. Other versions are available.
	In the 12 months—October 2006 to September 2007 (the latest 12 months available) there were 38,679 prescription items dispensed in the community for Prozac at a net ingredient cost of £897,616. In addition there were 4,938,722 prescriptions for generic Fluoxetine or other branded versions of the drug dispensed at a cost of £17,915,210.
	The figures for the cost of Prozac use in hospitals is not available.

South Central Ambulance Primary Care Trust

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his strategy is for improving the performance of South Central Ambulance Primary Care Trust.

Ben Bradshaw: It is for strategic health authorities (SHAs), as the local headquarters of the national health service, and primary care trusts, as commissioners, to ensure that strategies for improving performance are delivered by ambulance trusts.
	The hon. Member may therefore wish to raise this matter directly with the chief executive of South Central SHA.
	More generally, the Department, via the Recovery and Support Unit discusses performance with SHAs to ensure that SHAs work with local organisations to address performance issues, and if appropriate with support from the National Ambulance Performance Implementation Lead.